Methods and systems of classifying a product placement in a video using rule sets

ABSTRACT

A method of classifying a product placement in a video using rule sets is disclosed. Each rule of the rule set includes a value and one or more defining rule elements. An attribute rule set is created with attribute values and attribute elements that define levels of audio visual prominence of a product in the video. An integration rule set is created with integration values and integration elements where the integration elements define levels of integration of the product with video continuity. The video is partitioned at product scene changes to create product blocks. For each product block, an attribute value is selected based on the attribute elements and an integration value is selected based on the integration elements. An impact parameter for the video is derived as a function of the selected attribute values and integration value.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/814,453, filed Jun. 12, 2010, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/313,511 filed Mar. 22, 2010 titled“Quantitative Branding Analysis” and U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/186,764 filed Jun. 12, 2009 titled “Enhanced Viewer Interactionfor Programming” which are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

This application relates to branding and product placement inprogramming delivered to viewers and more specifically to methods andsystems for determining the value of embedding a commercial product inan entertainment segment.

Examples of branding systems are disclosed in U.S. Patent PublicationNos. US20080235077; US20030069822; US20050108082 and US20060020506 whichare hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

SUMMARY

Advertising has been an inherent part of commerce since the first signwas put over a shop door. Today print radio, television and the internetare used to reach the widest possible consumer base. Understanding thenumber and type of consumers specific advertising has reached and thenumber of times it reached them has been a concern to the marketer fromthe beginning.

While advertising is a mainstay of any market based economy, in recentyears brand placement has become an industry of its own. Brand placementmay be considered advertising that is part of the programming ratherthan a commercial segment separate from and sequential with theentertainment or broadcast programming. A logo appearing in the scenebackground or a movie star holding a can of cola has gone from theresponsibility of the prop department to a boardroom driven commodity.

Evaluating and quantifying the value of this branding may be importantto those producing the entertainment programming and the marketers anddistributors of the products. The value of a screen character holding abottle of wine and a filled glass discussing how good the wine is may bedeemed as more valuable than having a logo in the background which ispartially obscured. An evaluation or classification system for measuringa complete set of factors associated with placement of a product in anentertainment segment may provide a consistent and dependable evaluationof branding that can be used by marketers and networks as a standard fordetermining pricing for this product exposure.

Many factors may be used in determining the value of a product or logoplaced in programming. The size of the product on the screen, legibilityof the logo, lighting of the product, how long it is shown in thescreen, whether the product in used by a character in the programmingand whether the character discusses the product may all be factors indetermining the value of a specific product placement.

While the words “television” and “screen” may be used in the followingexamples, this disclosure applies to many different kinds of contentdissemination techniques. Examples include cable, satellite, internetapplications such as YouTube, Hulu.com and ABC.com, mobile applications,movie theaters with interactive features, airline inseat mediapresentation and music videos among others as well as audio applicationssuch as broadcast radio or satellite radio.

Branding, brand placement, logo placement or product placement may beused interchangeably here and for the purposes of this disclosure willbe defined as the placement of any audio or visual presence of acommercial product in an entertainment segment for monetary or otherconsideration for the purpose of exposing the product to viewers of theentertainment segment. An entertainment segment may be any programdirected to viewers such as dramas, comedies, contests, documentaries,news programs or any other such media presentations. Value, valuation,classification and evaluation may apply to a price or monetary value butalso encompasses value in terms of impact and impression branding makeson viewers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a depiction of a segment of programming with branding.

FIG. 2 is a chart illustrating segmenting of an entertainment programand a factoring function.

FIG. 3 is a chart illustrating variables, parameters and dependencieswhich may be used in evaluating branding.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of steps for deriving variables and parameters.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of steps for deriving attribute values, awarenessvalues and integration values from a segment.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of steps for deriving a quality parameter.

FIG. 7 is an example of an occurrence function.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart for deriving a quality parameter using anoccurrence function.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart of steps for deriving a quality parameter.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart for deriving a qratio parameter.

FIG. 11 is an example web page with branding evaluation data.

DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is an example of programming that may be developed for viewerentertainment. In this example the programming may employ various props,sets, actors and venues to support a plot and script. Actors may employdialog and body language to act out the story in the script. In FIG. 1three actors are eating a meal at a table in the setting of arestaurant. A waiter is delivering wine to the table. One actor isholding up a glass of wine and another actor is speaking. Backgroundfeatures are visible.

FIG. 1 may also comprise a branding system 10 including a television 12with a screen 12A, primary branding or product placement 14 of acommercial product 16 shown here as a bottle of “Güte” wine. Screen 12Aalso shows secondary branding 14A as a Güte wine comment and 14B as aglass of Güte wine. Also shown is a tertiary branding 18 shown as animage of a VW logo in the background partially obscured by primarybranding 14. Viewer exposure to one or more of primary branding 14,secondary branding 14A and 14B, and tertiary branding 18 may influenceviewers to buy Güte wine or to buy a VW car or it may influence theviewer's association or impression of these products.

Evaluating the value of branding may require different measures than areused for evaluating the value of a standard advertising segment or anadvertising slot. Production of the advertising segment is typicallycontrolled by the marketer and is inserted in a slot betweenentertainment segments. It may be valued primarily by factors includingthe number of viewers, the age of the viewers of an entertainmentsegment, the type of viewer and/or the length of the advertisement slot.Branding evaluation may involve additional factors such as audio visualattributes and integration factors that affect the value of specificbranding.

FIG. 2 is a process chart 20 that may represent a portion of brandingsystem 10. Entertainment program 22 may initially be divided into blocksor segments 24. Segment or block 24 may be defined by scene changes,changes in product presentation, plot changes or other defining shiftsin branded entertainment programming 22. A segment may be delineatedsuch that each segment has substantially one audio visual brandingattribute. Segments 24 may be further divided into subsegments such asaudio segments and video segments. Each segment 24 may be classified andevaluated by an analyst 26 in a factoring process 28 to assign attributevalues and derive critical parameters related to the value of thebranding or presentation of the product during entertainment program 22.Analyst 26 may be a person or the functions of analyst 26 could beautomated. For example, an image recognition system may be used toidentify products on screen or to identify portions of the screens usedas tags. The image recognition system may be included in or associatedwith a data collection system.

The data collection system may include or may be associated with systemsthat develop measures of the value, quality, effectiveness and recallassociated with user selection of specific tags or placement of productson screen. For example, sponsors may want to know how users respond tothe placement of their product on screen as a function of the size ofthe product image, it's association with plot events, it's associationwith specific characters, or its association with characters ofdifferent sexes. The data collection system may determine a specific setof measures associated with a product displayed on screen. The datacollection system may include metrics associated with tags in thespecific set of measures. The data collection system may develop onequality factor for each product placement that is a function of anothernarrower set of factors. Data collection system may use personal userdata such as age, gender, career, interests and family size.

The data collection system may include a user interface displaying a setof web pages. Data collected or developed by system may be displayed onuser interface. Data displayed on the web page includes a web page withthree tabs, report, campaigns and trends. The report tab may include aseries of entries including for each a report name, a premier date aprogram, a brand or product, a recall value, a quality value a Q-ratioand a valuation value as shown on web page. Data displayed on the userinterface may be limited by various button or pull down selections tosee narrower sets of data.

FIG. 3 is a chart showing sources and dependencies for differentvariables. Entertainment program 22 is divided into segments 24 asdescribed in FIG. 2. Analyst 26 in factoring process 28 may evaluateeach segment for audio visual attributes 34 assigning level values basedon elements and definitions of a rule set 32. Analyst 26 furtherevaluates integration 36 and awareness 38 based on elements described inadditional rule sets and assigns awareness and integration values. Aduration 40 of each segment is also recorded. Audio visual attributes34, integration 36, awareness 38 and duration 40 may be consideredmeasured branding attributes 30 as indicated by the dotted line box.

Factoring process 28 may generate an occurrence value 42 from the audiovisual attributes. Occurrence value 42 may be a count of the number ofsegments at a level or may be a count of time periods at that level. Forexample, five segments may be assigned to a level and the occurrencevalue may be five. In an alternative configuration, a time period offive seconds may be defined. The five segments assigned to the level maybe ten seconds each for a total of fifty seconds. This would thencorrespond to an occurrence level of ten occurrences.

Impact parameter 44 may be derived from the attribute values andintegration values 36. A Qratio parameter 46 may be derived from impactparameter 44, awareness value 38, an attentiveness variable 54 and anoccurrence function 56. Quality parameter 48 may be derived fromoccurrence values 42, occurrence function 56, integration values 36 andquality factors 58. Recall parameter 50 may be derived from occurrencevalues 42, integration values 36, recall factors 60 and occurrencefunction 56. Impact parameter 44, Qratio 46, quality parameter 48 andrecall parameter 50 may be considered derived parameters 52 as indicatedby the dotted line box. Attentiveness 54, occurrence function 56,quality factors 58 and recall factors 60 may be applied variables notdependent on segment measured variables. These applied variables may bedetermined separately from any specific entertainment segment 22.

Evaluating Branding Attributes

Audiovisual attribute 34 may be any product attribute as perceived by aviewer in segment 24. Audio visual attribute 34 may be defined by a ruleset 32. Rule set 32 may define levels and each level may include anattribute value and a set of one or more level definitions or elementsthat differentiate characteristics of that level and delineates it fromother levels. Factoring process 28 may use several rule sets 32.

TABLE 1 Audio Visual Attributes Rule Set Audio Visual Attribute ElementsAttribute Label [32A] Value [32B] VL0 None 0 VL1 Background 1 VL2Background Close-up 2 VL3 Foreground 3 VL4 Foreground Closeup 4 VL5Hands-On 5 VL6 Hands-On Close-up 6 VL7 Implied Endorsement 7 VL8 CustomElement 8 AL0 None 0 AL1 Verbal 2 AL2 Verbal and Visual 4

Table 1 shows an example visual attributes rule set that includes alabel, audio visual attribute elements 32A and attribute values 32B.Visual level attribute elements 32A as shown in Table 1 may include“None,” “Background,” “Background Close-up,” “Foreground,” “ForegroundCloseup Graphics,” “Hands-On,” “Hands-On Close-up,” “ImpliedEndorsement,” “Custom Element.” These may be abbreviated references tomore detailed definitions.

A “Background” level may indicate the product or logo is discernible inthe background such as on a wall. With the “Background Close-up” levelthe product placement has clear logo identification, and is quitevisible, though behind the main action on the screen.

At the “Foreground” level the main action on the screen takes placebehind the product, or the camera moves in front of the product. The“Foreground Close-up” level may include a product shot (screen isfocused almost exclusively on a product, as in a display of products) orthe overlay of a logo on the screen (i.e. a sponsorship tag, aninterstitial, a branded “call this number to vote” overlay).

A “Hands On” level may have the actors holding the product. This mayinclude holding a beverage. “Hands On Closeup” may have the actorsprominently displaying the product. This may include the actor drinkingfrom the beverage with the logo prominently visible. For the level of“Implied Endorsement” the actor uses or interacts with the product. Alead actor driving an identifiable vehicle can fall under this category.A “Custom Element” may include a special tag or icon visible on thescreen in addition to appearance of commercial product 16.

As an example of at least part of factoring process 28 and referringagain to FIG. 1, “VW” logo 16 is in the background and partiallyblocked. It may be assigned a “None” visual level of VL0 and anattribute value 32B of zero. In a later segment logo 16 may not beobscured and it may be assigned or indexed to a “Background” visuallevel of VL1 and a attribute value 32B of one.

Branding 14 of FIG. 1 where the wine bottle with the product name orlogo is clearly presented and centered on the screen in a separatesegment by itself may be assigned or indexed to a level of VL4 and anattribute value 32B of four. Branding 14B in a separate segment byitself where the glass of wine is a prominent focus may be assigned a“Hands-On” level of VL5. When two or more types of branding for a singlevendor are combined in a scene such as that shown in FIG. 1, a highervideo and/or audio level may be assigned.

Audio attributes may also be related to what a viewer hears duringsegment 24 in relation to a product as noted by labels AL0 and AL1.Referring again to Table 1, audio levels may be limited to no audio AL0,audible reference to the product AL1. Additional level may be used thanthe examples shown here. Audible reference to the product while theproduct is visible may require an audio and visual level that may belabeled AL1+VLx.

For example, referring again to FIG. 1, secondary branding 14A where acustomer is extolling the virtues of the product in a separate segmentby itself may be assigned an audio level of AL1. Secondary branding 14Atogether with primary branding 14 as shown may be assigned a level ofAL1+VL4 for an attribute value 32B of six.

Audio and/or visual attributes may include or may be modified bypresence and clarity. Presence is the degree to which a product or brandis viewed in comparison to the amount and type of environmental clutterthan surrounds it. It may also reflect the brand's “share of voice” onscreen. Clarity is a product's visual and audio intelligibility based onclearness and lucidity in a scene.

A bottle of beer as the only product in an actor's hand may indicatehigh presence. The same bottle strategically positioned on top of therefrigerator with other products present may indicate an averagepresence. The same bottle of beer on a refrigerator shelf in asupermarket with many other beers may indicate a low presence.

Clarity and presence may have rule sets with values and elements anddefinitions. Clarity and presence values may be assigned to segment 24as part of factoring process 28. Values for clarity and presence may belimited to zero and minus one. Good clarity and/or presence may have azero value. Poor clarity and/or presence may decrement the audio visualattribute value by one. Other value sets for presence and clarity may beused.

Awareness 38 may be related to the association of the product with aprimary character or on-screen persona. Product 16 held by a well knownstar or primary character may have a much higher awareness rating thanproduct 16 held by a walk-on character that may not be recognized by aviewer. Awareness 38 may be governed by a rule set 32 that includeslevels, level values and classifications, definitions and/or elementsdifferentiating and delineating that level.

As an example, in FIG. 1 the character holding the wine glass anddiscussing product 16 may generate a higher awareness value than the VWlogo separate from the primary characters. Awareness 38 may be a factoron the order of 0.8 to 1.5 and may be used as a factor for other derivedparameters as described below.

Integration 36 may reflect the depth in which a brand is woven into thestory arc or inclusion of the product with video continuity and content.The deepest integrations which communicate brand features and attributeshave the greatest potential to influence the viewer. For example a moviewith a plot involving stealing Ferrari automobiles may have a highervalue for integration 36 for the Ferrari product than another moviewhich is a love story and a character drives a Ferrari automobile.Integration 36 may be governed by a rule set 32 that includes levels,level values and classifications, definitions and/or elementsdifferentiating and delineating that level.

Awareness 38 and integration 36 may be interdependent between sequentialsegments 24. Where the awareness value is high in a first segment, thefollowing segment may have an increased integration value as a result.

In another example, in FIG. 1 the wine glass and wine is more integratedinto the programming continuity and content than is the VW logo in thebackground. The wine may be indexed to a higher integration value thanthe VW logo would be. Integration values may fall between 1 to 200 andthere may be ten levels.

Attentiveness may be related to the portion of viewers that are activelyfollowing a broadcast. For a commercial network TV broadcast areasonable estimate is that approximately 62% of viewers are payingattention to the broadcast. For a pay-cable broadcast the number thenumber of viewers paying attention may be approximately 80% and for amovie theater the viewer portion may be close to 99%. For commercialtelevision the number of viewers viewing a commercial break may be 33%.If during the same show, there is a product placement, the portion ofviewers that will be exposed to the product may be assumed to be allattentive viewers or 62%.

Attentiveness in relation to product placement may be expressed as aratio of the number of viewers with attention to the screen during theappearance of the product to the number of viewers that would bewatching a commercial segment that may be placed after the entertainmentsegment with the product placement.

As an example, 62% of viewers may be exposed to branding in anentertainment segment. During a commercial break in the same program 33%of viewers may be attentive. Attentiveness to branding would then beequal to 0.62/0.33 or 1.87.

The base value for attentiveness may change over time as viewer habitschange. Should only 25% of viewers view commercial segments in a programwhile 62% view branding in a program, the attentiveness number for aproduct placement would instead be 2.48.

Alternatively, the base value for attentiveness may be based on adifferent set of factors than the example above. For example, a valuefor the proportion of viewers watching a commercial may be based on eyemovements of a set of viewing subjects. Any substantive indication ofcommercial viewers may be used to determine a base value.

Duration 40 again represents the number of measured seconds in segment24.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart representing one example of factoring process 28and derivation of quality, recall and qratio parameters. In step 70 afirst or next segment 24 is selected for review. In step 72 visual levelof the branding is evaluated and in step 74 the visual clarity andpresence are evaluated. In step 76 audio level is evaluated and in step78 the audio clarity is evaluated. In step 79 integration 36 isevaluated. In step 80 awareness 38 is evaluated. In step 82 duration 40of the segment is determined.

A qcore parameter for segment 24 may be derived in step 84. In step 86if current segment 24 is not the last segment, control returns to step70 and a new segment is evaluated. If it is the last segment, controlmoves out of the loop and attentiveness is evaluated at step 88.Parameter values for quality, recall and qratio for entertainmentprogram 22 as a whole are derived in steps 90, 92 and 94. In step 96evaluated attribute values and derived parameters and data are loaded toa user interface program and the process ends at step 98. The set ofsegments 24 evaluated typically comprises an entertainment program 22.

Deriving Parameters

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing example steps in attribute evaluation andassigning attribute values to a segment 24. In step 150 the next segmentin a series of segments from entertainment program 22 is viewed byanalyst 26. Analyst 26 reviews the segment at step 152 and determinesattributes of product 16 which appears in the segment. Analyst 26 mayuse a rule set 32 that includes audio visual attribute elements asillustrated in Table I. In step 154 analyst 26 may compare the listedcharacteristic attribute elements to the audio visual or brandingelements of product 16 embedded in segment 24. In step 156 analyst 26may determine or index a level for the segment most closely aligned tothe elements 32A in the attribute rule set and assign the attributevalue 32B of that level to the segment.

Analyst 26 may have similar rule sets for integration attributes and instep 158 may compare the listed integration elements to the elements ofproduct 16 displayed in segment 24. In step 160 analyst 26 may determineor index a specific level for integration 36 for the segment that mostclosely aligned to the elements in the integration rule set. Analyst 26may have similar rule sets for awareness 38 elements and in step 162 maycompare the listed characteristic awareness elements to the elements ofproduct 16 displayed in segment 24. In step 164 analyst 26 may determineor index an awareness level for the branding attributes of the segmentmost closely aligned to the elements in an awareness rule set. In step166 if the current segment is the last segment then the process ends atstep 168, else flow returns to step 150 to get the next segment.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of steps in deriving a value for qualityparameter 48 as indicated in block 90. In step 200 a quality referencetable or quality matrix may be used. Table 2 is an example of a qualitymatrix. The quality matrix may include quality factors 58 such as corequality, attribute quality and max count. These values may be developedindependently from any entertainment program 22.

Analyst 26 may view each of segments 24 and evaluate audio and visuallevels for each segment of program 22 as described in FIG. 5. After allsegments 24 of program 22 are evaluated, the occurrence value 42 whichreflects the total number of occurrences or counts of segments at eachlevel are recorded in the second column of the quality matrix of Table2. The third, fourth and fifth columns as shown list example corevalues, attribute values and max values. Where VL4 has a number ofoccurrences of two, this indicates two segments of the entertainmentprogram had branding with audio visual attribute elements 32A of“Foreground Close-up.”

In step 202 the occurrence values 42 in column 2 may be compared to themax values. Any occurrence value greater than the max value may bechanged to the max value as noted. In step 204 the highest occurrencevalue in column 2 is selected. In block 206 variable Qx is assigned thecore value for that level and the selected occurrence value is thendecremented by one. In block 208 each non-zero occurrence value isindexed to the quality attribute value for that level. In block 210 thesum of the product of the occurrence value and the quality attributevalue for each level is derived. In block 212 the program qualityparameter 48 is derived by adding the Qx value to the sum of theproducts.

As an example, and using the example values shown in Table 2, columns 1and 2 may comprise a histogram of the quality matrix. The second columnmay indicate the number of occurrences for that level. The maximumoccurrence value is 5 for level AL1+VL2. The core value 27 is assignedto Qx. The 5 occurrences are now decremented to 4 occurrences. The sumof the products will be2×0.1+1×0.3+2×0.1+2×1.8+1×0.5+3×3.4+4×3.4+2×4.1+2×5.0+1×3.8=50.6. AddingQx to this gives a value for quality parameter 48 of 77.6. These valuesare examples for the purpose of illustration and other values may beused and still fall within the scope of this disclosure.

Quality may further be a function of integration. The sum of theproducts may be multiplied by an integration value.

TABLE 2 Quality Matrix for Deriving Quality Parameter Quality QualityQuality No. Level Core Attribute Max Label Occurrences Value Value ValueVL0 0 0 0 0 VL1 2 2 0.1 20 VL2 1 3 0.3 10 VL3 2 10 0.1 20 VL4 2 18 1.8 5VL5 1 20 0.5 10 VL6 0 30 3 5 VL7 0 20 0.5 10 VL8 0 25 0.6 10 AL1 + VL0 025 3.1 0 AL1 + VL1 3 27 3.4 0 AL1 + VL2 5 27 3.4 0 AL1 + VL3 0 33 3.8 0AL1 + VL4 2 33 4.1 0 AL1 + VL5 0 35 4.4 0 AL1 + VL6 2 40 5 0 AL1 + VL7 130 3.8 0 AL1 + VL8 0 40 5 0

Values used in the quality matrix, more specifically core, max andattribute values may be derived from one or more external sources.Possible sources may include market studies, focus groups, customersurveys and psychology studies. Commercial product owners may specifyvalues to be used in the matrix.

One value of audio level AL1 is used in Table 2 and may be essentiallybinary, a verbal reference or no verbal reference. In some matrixconfigurations more audio levels may be used and another set of levelswould be included.

Alternatively or in addition, rather than the number of occurrencesbeing multiplied by a quality attribute value, the quality attributevalue may be represented by a function. Any of various linear ornon-linear functions may be used. Use of a declining function mayreflect that a viewer seeing a logo one time may have a significantimpact on the viewer. Seeing the logo for the hundredth time may have aminimal impact.

FIG. 7 shows an example log normal declining value function that may beused in deriving a value. Occurrence function 56 may reflect thedeclining impact branding may have on viewers over longer durations orover repeated occurrences. Occurrence function 56 may be anymathematical function or assigned values. Here occurrence function 56 isshown as a declining log normal function.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart of an alternative method for deriving a value forquality parameter 48 to that in FIG. 6. Here an occurrence function 56is used together with an alternative algorithm. In step 300 a matrix isdeveloped using occurrence value 42 of levels and occurrences for allsegments. Here the occurrence value 42 may be derived differently. Hererather than the number of segments, At step 302 the number ofoccurrences at each level is determined using a number of time periodsin a segment. For example, one branding event at level VL4 that lastsfor 20 seconds where the defined time period is ten seconds may count astwo occurrences. One branding event lasting less than the defined timeperiod may be rounded up to a value of one occurrence. The matrixdeveloped here may be similar to Table 2 with an occurrence value foreach level.

At step 304 a quality core value is indexed at each level with a nonzerooccurrence in the matrix. At step 306 a quality value is determined foreach level using occurrence function 56. For example, using theoccurrence value of 5 from Table 2 and using values of one through fiveshown on the occurrence function 56 of FIG. 7. The level quality valuemay be derived by summing the values of occurrence function 56 at 5values of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 or 1.0+0.5+0.34+0.25+0.2 equal to 2.29 andthen multiplying that value by the core value of 27. At step 308 thevalue for quality parameter 48 is determined by summing the levelquality values.

Deriving a value for quality parameter 48 may include a combination ofthe methods and steps described in FIGS. 6 and 8. For example,determining level quality for levels VL0 through VL6 may use a decliningquality function as described in FIG. 8 while levels VL7, VL8 andAL1+VL0 through AL1+VL8 may use the core value plus attribute valuemethod as described in FIG. 6.

Recall parameter 50 may relate to the ability of a viewer to rememberthe embedded commercial product after viewing branding. Recall 50 may bederived using methods similar to methods used to calculate qualityparameter 48. Recall parameter 50 may use a different set of factors 60in the matrix. A typical recall matrix is shown in Table 3. Theoccurrence values shown in column 2 for this example are the sameoccurrence values in the quality matrix of Table 2.

TABLE 3 Recall Matrix for Deriving Recall Parameter Recall Recall RecallNo. Level Core Attribute Max Label Occurrences Value Value Value VL0 0 00 10 VL1 2 0.5 0 10 VL2 1 1 0 10 VL3 2 1.5 0 10 VL4 2 3 0 10 VL5 1 4 010 VL6 0 6 0 10 VL7 0 3.5 0 10 VL8 0 5 0 10 AL1 + VL0 0 7.5 0 10 AL1 +VL1 3 8 0 10 AL1 + VL2 5 8 0 10 AL1 + VL3 0 8.5 0 10 AL1 + VL4 2 9 0 10AL1 + VL5 0 10 0 10 AL1 + VL6 2 12.5 0 10 AL1 + VL7 1 10 0 10 AL1 + VL80 12.5 0 10

FIG. 9 is a flow chart of steps in deriving a value for recall parameter48 as indicated in block 92. In step 320 a recall reference table orrecall matrix may be used. Table 3 is an example of a recall matrix. Therecall matrix may include recall factors 60 such as core quality, recallattribute and max count. These values may be developed independentlyfrom any entertainment program 22.

Analyst 26 may view each of segments 24 and evaluate audio and visuallevels for each segment of program 22 as described in FIG. 5. After allsegments 24 of program 22 are evaluated, the occurrence value 42 whichreflects the total number of occurrences or counts of segments at eachlevel are recorded in the second column of the recall matrix of Table 3.The third, fourth and fifth columns as shown list example core values,recall attribute values and max values.

In step 322 the occurrence values in column 2 may be compared to the maxvalues. Any occurrence value greater than the max value may be changedto the max value as noted. In step 324 the highest occurrence value incolumn 2 is selected. In block 326 variable Rx is assigned the corevalue for that level and the selected occurrence value is thendecremented by one. In block 328 each non-zero occurrence value isindexed to the recall attribute value for that level. In block 330 thesum of the product of the occurrence value and the recall attributevalue for each level is derived. In block 332 the program recallparameter 48 is derived by adding the Rx value to the sum of theproducts.

As an example of deriving recall parameter 50, and using the methods andsteps of FIG. 6 and still referring to the recall matrix of Table 3,where the second column is the number of occurrences for that level. Themaximum occurrence value shown is five for level AL1+VL2. The core value8 is assigned to Rx. The five occurrences are now decremented to fouroccurrences. The sum of the products in this case where the attributesare all zero will be zero. Adding Rx to this gives a recall parametervalue of eight. These values are examples for the purpose ofillustration and other values may be used and still fall within thescope of this disclosure. Recall may further be a function ofintegration. The recall parameter may be multiplied by an integrationvalue.

In an alternative configuration, a recall parameter using occurrencefunction 56 may be derived. using steps similar to those of FIG. 8.

Recall factors 60 used in the recall matrix, more specifically core, maxand attribute values may again be derived from one or more externalsources. Possible sources may include market studies, focus groups,customer surveys and psychology studies. Product owners may specifyvalues to be used in the matrix of Table 3.

It may be preferable in defining quality factors 58 or recall factors 60that the derived parameter for a set of segments with three occurrencesof a VL3 level be approximately equal to the derived parameter for a setof segments with one VL2 occurrence, one VL3 occurrence and one VL4occurrence. This may be a function of a declining function andassociated values and/or values of the associated matrix.

Deriving program recall parameter 50 may include a combination ofmethods. For example, recall for levels VL0 through VL6 may use adeclining recall function as described in FIG. 8 while levels VL7, VL8and AL1+VL0 through AL1+VL8 may use the core value plus attribute valuemethod described in FIG. 9.

One audio level is shown in Table 3 and may be essentially binary, averbal reference or no verbal reference. In alternative configurationsmore audio levels may be used and another set of levels would beincluded in the matrix of Table 3.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart describing derivation of Qratio 46 as noted insteps 84 and 94 of FIG. 4. In step 350 parameters for selected segment24 are evaluated. In step 352 impact 44 is derived as a function of thesegment attributes of visual level, visual presence, visual clarity,audio level, audio clarity and integration. Impact parameter 44 may bederived in step 352 by summing values of the visual level, visualpresence, visual clarity, audio level, audio clarity and integration.Alternatively, impact parameters 44 may be derived in step 352 usinganother function such as summing visual level, visual presence, visualclarity, audio level and audio clarity and multiplying the sum byintegration 36. Impact 44 may reflect a base-line level of quality bybiasing every branded second based on an endorsement level. For example,three seconds of passive background placement is worth a fraction of athree second verbal endorsement of a brand.

In step 354 the qcore value for segment 24 may be derived by multiplyingimpact 44 by awareness 38 and occurrence function 56. Occurrencefunction 56 may be similar to that used in deriving quality and recallparameters. Occurrence function 56 may be a declining function and mayreflect the impact of branding on a viewer over a longer period of time.Occurrence function 56 may be any linear or non-linear function.

Qratio 46 for program 22 is updated by adding the qcore value for thesegment multiplied by attentiveness to the current value for the programQratio 46 in step 356. In step 358 if the current segment is the lastsegment, control passes to step 360 and the method ends at step 362. Ifin step 358 the current segment is not the last segment, the nextsegment 24 is selected at step 360 and control returns to step 350.Again, the set of segments 24 evaluated may correspond to anentertainment program 22.

Qratio 46 may be applied as a valuation multiple (currency) whichreflects the brand exposure impact on an average viewer of a brandplacement. Qratio 46 may be applied to a base value such as anadvertising segment price to derive a monetary value for the brandplacement. This process may provide a cross comparison between brandedentertainment value exposure regardless of the venue. (TV, Sports Film,Web-Video, etc).

FIG. 11 is a web page 400 displaying branding evaluation data for acommercial product as may be acquired using branding evaluation stepsdescribed above. Replay section 402 of web page 400 is shown as adisplay that replays segments 24 of entertainment program 22 showing inpart an embedded commercial product. Section 402 is shown including ascreen 402A and controls 402B for replay, fast forward and fast reverseof the segment replay.

Web page 400 further includes monitor section 404. Monitor section 404is shown with a set of scrolling blocks 404A with sizes reflectingsegment duration (width) and attribute value (height), Monitor section404 further includes an index marker 404B of the current playing segmentthat remains stationary as the blocks scroll, a current time 404C forthe elapsed time of the entertainment program and beginning time 404Dand total time 404E for the displayed entertainment program 22.

Index marker 404B may indicate the block 404A currently playing insection 402 and the sequence of blocks 404A may show the sequence andorder of segments in entertainment program 22.

Web page 400 further includes an icon data section 406. Icon datasection 406 may display data related to the current section as labeledicons. Data displayed in this section may include audio visual attributedata related to the current segment being displayed in section 402.

Web page 400 further includes a quantitative data section 408.Quantitative data section 408 is shown displaying numeric fields withvariable data and data labels. The numeric fields may update with newcurrent data for the current segment where appropriate.

The described system and assemblies are examples and are not to be usedas limitations. While wine has been used as a product example, anyproduct or branding presented in this context may fall within the scopeof this disclosure. Any suitable configuration or combination ofcomponents presented, or equivalents to them that perform a similarfunction falls within the scope of this disclosure.

This disclosure may include one or more independent or interdependentinventions directed to various combinations of features, functions,elements and/or properties, one or more of which may be defined in thefollowing claims. Other combinations and sub-combinations of features,functions, elements and/or properties may be claimed later in this or arelated application. Such variations, whether they are directed todifferent combinations or directed to the same combinations, whetherdifferent, broader, narrower or equal in scope, are also regarded asincluded within the subject matter of the present disclosure.

An appreciation of the availability or significance of claims notpresently claimed may not be presently realized. Accordingly, theforegoing embodiments are illustrative, and no single feature orelement, or combination thereof, is essential to all possiblecombinations that may be claimed in this or a later application. Eachclaim defines an invention disclosed in the foregoing disclosure, butany one claim does not necessarily encompass all features orcombinations that may be claimed. Where the claims recite “a” or “afirst” element or the equivalent thereof, such claims include one ormore such elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more suchelements. Further, ordinal indicators, such as first, second or third,for identified elements are used to distinguish between the elements,and do not indicate a required or limited number of such elements, anddo not indicate a particular position or order of such elements unlessotherwise specifically stated.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An automated method of classifying aproduct placement in a video using rule sets, each rule of the rule setincluding a value and one or more defining rule elements, the methodcomprising: identifying, with image recognition software, a product inthe video; creating an attribute rule set with attribute values andattribute elements that define levels of audio visual prominence of theproduct in the video; creating an integration rule set with integrationvalues and integration elements where the integration elements definelevels of integration of the product with video continuity; partitioningthe video at product scene changes to create product blocks; for eachproduct block, selecting an attribute value based on the attributeelements; for each product block, selecting an integration value basedon the integration elements; and deriving an impact parameter for thevideo as a function of the selected attribute values and integrationvalue.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: defining a timeperiod as a finite period of time; measuring segment duration of eachsegment; and defining an occurrence value for each attribute level asone of: the number of attribute values selected for each attributelevel; or the number of time periods in the durations of the segmentsassigned to each attribute level.
 3. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising: defining an attentiveness factor as a ratio of the number ofviewers of product placement to the number of viewers of commercialsegments; defining quality factors; creating an awareness rule set withawareness values and awareness elements where the awareness elementsdefine awareness levels of integration of the product with on-screenpersona; and deriving a quality parameter as a function of at least theoccurrence value, the awareness level, the quality factors, and theattentiveness factor.
 4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:defining an occurrence function; and deriving the quality parameter as afunction of the occurrence value, the awareness level, the attentivenesslevel, the quality factors and the occurrence function.
 5. The method ofclaim 2, further comprising: defining an attentiveness factor as a ratioof the number of viewers of product placement to the number of viewersof commercial segments; defining recall factors; creating an awarenessrule set with awareness values and awareness elements where theawareness elements define awareness levels of integration of the productwith on-screen persona; and deriving a recall parameter as a function ofat least the occurrence value, the awareness level, the recall factors,and the attentiveness factor.
 6. The method claim 5, further comprising:defining an occurrence function; and deriving the recall parameter as afunction of the occurrence value, the awareness level, the attentivenesslevel, the recall factors and the occurrence function.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: displaying a web page that includes: avideo portion that displays the video with the product placement; and aqualitative data portion that displays integration values and attributevalues.
 8. A system for automatically classifying a product placement ina video using rule sets, each rule of the rule set including a value andone or more defining rule elements, the system comprising one or moreprocessors connected to at least one storage device, the system beingconfigured to: identify, with image recognition software, a product inthe video; create an attribute rule set with attribute values andattribute elements that define levels of audio visual prominence of theproduct in the video; create an integration rule set with integrationvalues and integration elements where the integration elements definelevels of integration of the product with video continuity; partitionthe video at product scene changes to create product blocks; for eachproduct block, select an attribute value based on the attributeelements; for each product block, select an integration value based onthe integration elements; and derive an impact parameter for the videoas a function of the selected attribute values and integration value. 9.The system of claim 8, wherein the system is further configured to:define a time period as a finite period of time; measure segmentduration of each segment; and define an occurrence value for eachattribute level as one of: the number of attribute values selected foreach attribute level; or the number of time periods in the durations ofthe segments assigned to each attribute level.
 10. The system of claim9, wherein the system is further configured to: define an attentivenessfactor as a ratio of the number of viewers of product placement to thenumber of viewers of commercial segments; define quality factors; createan awareness rule set with awareness values and awareness elements wherethe awareness elements define awareness levels of integration of theproduct with on-screen persona; and derive a quality parameter as afunction of at least the occurrence value, the awareness level, thequality factors, and the attentiveness factor.
 11. The system of claim10, wherein the system is further configured to: define an occurrencefunction; and derive the quality parameter as a function of theoccurrence value, the awareness level, the attentiveness level, thequality factors and the occurrence function.
 12. The system of claim 9,wherein the system is further configured to: define an attentivenessfactor as a ratio of the number of viewers of product placement to thenumber of viewers of commercial segments; define recall factors; createan awareness rule set with awareness values and awareness elements wherethe awareness elements define awareness levels of integration of theproduct with on-screen persona; and derive a recall parameter as afunction of at least the occurrence value, the awareness level, therecall factors, and the attentiveness factor.
 13. The system of claim12, wherein the system is further configured to: define an occurrencefunction; and derive the recall parameter as a function of theoccurrence value, the awareness level, the attentiveness level, therecall factors and the occurrence function.
 14. The system of claim 8,wherein the system is further configured to: display a web page thatincludes: a video portion that displays the video with the productplacement; and a qualitative data portion that displays integrationvalues and attribute values.
 15. A storage device storing a computerprogram for automatically classifying a product placement in a videousing rule sets, each rule of the rule set including a value and one ormore defining rule elements, the computer program comprising one or morecode segments that, when executed, cause one or more processors to:identify, with image recognition software, a product in the video;create an attribute rule set with attribute values and attributeelements that define levels of audio visual prominence of the product inthe video; create an integration rule set with integration values andintegration elements where the integration elements define levels ofintegration of the product with video continuity; partition the video atproduct scene changes to create product blocks; for each product block,select an attribute value based on the attribute elements; for eachproduct block, select an integration value based on the integrationelements; and derive an impact parameter for the video as a function ofthe selected attribute values and integration value.
 16. The storagedevice of claim 15, wherein the computer program further comprises oneor more code segments that, when executed, cause the one or moreprocessors to: define a time period as a finite period of time; measuresegment duration of each segment; and define an occurrence value foreach attribute level as one of: the number of attribute values selectedfor each attribute level; or the number of time periods in the durationsof the segments assigned to each attribute level.
 17. The storage deviceof claim 16, wherein the computer program further comprises one or morecode segments that, when executed, cause the one or more processors to:define an attentiveness factor as a ratio of the number of viewers ofproduct placement to the number of viewers of commercial segments;define quality factors; create an awareness rule set with awarenessvalues and awareness elements where the awareness elements defineawareness levels of integration of the product with on-screen persona;and derive a quality parameter as a function of at least the occurrencevalue, the awareness level, the quality factors, and the attentivenessfactor.
 18. The storage device of claim 17, wherein the computer programfurther comprises one or more code segments that, when executed, causethe one or more processors to: define an occurrence function; and derivethe quality parameter as a function of the occurrence value, theawareness level, the attentiveness level, the quality factors and theoccurrence function.
 19. The storage device of claim 16, wherein thecomputer program further comprises one or more code segments that, whenexecuted, cause the one or more processors to: define an attentivenessfactor as a ratio of the number of viewers of product placement to thenumber of viewers of commercial segments; define recall factors; createan awareness rule set with awareness values and awareness elements wherethe awareness elements define awareness levels of integration of theproduct with on-screen persona; and derive a recall parameter as afunction of at least the occurrence value, the awareness level, therecall factors, and the attentiveness factor.
 20. The storage device ofclaim 19, wherein the computer program further comprises one or morecode segments that, when executed, cause the one or more processors to:define an occurrence function; and derive the recall parameter as afunction of the occurrence value, the awareness level, the attentivenesslevel, the recall factors and the occurrence function.
 21. The storagedevice of claim 15, wherein the computer program further comprises oneor more code segments that, when executed, cause the one or moreprocessors to: display a web page that includes: a video portion thatdisplays the video with the product placement; and a qualitative dataportion that displays integration values and attribute values.